Cholesterol

Calcium and vitamin D supplements after menopause can improve women’s cholesterol profiles. And much of that effect is tied to raising vitamin D levels, finds a new study from the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) just published online in Menopause, the journal of The North American Menopause Society (NAMS).

Calcium and vitamin D supplements after menopause can improve women’s cholesterol profiles. And much of that effect is tied to raising vitamin D levels, finds a new study from the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) just published online in Menopause, the journal of The North American Menopause Society (NAMS).

The consumption of fish has long been known to be beneficial for health; however, the mechanisms by which fats and other useful nutrients found in fish work in the human body are not fully known. Now research confirms that increasing the intake of fatty fish increases the number of large HDL particles. People who increased their intake of fish to a minimum of 3-4 weekly meals had more large HDL particles in their blood than people who are less frequent eaters of fish. Large HDL particles are believed to protect against cardiovascular diseases.

Low-density lipoprotein (LDL), the “bad cholesterol” that doctors consider a sign of potential heart disease, is merely a marker of a diet lacking all of the essential amino acids, says University of Illinois comparative biosciences professor Fred Kummerow, 99, a longtime opponent of the medical establishment’s war on cholesterol.

A team of volunteers ate half a kilo of strawberries a day for a month to see whether it altered their blood parameters in any way. At the end of this unusual treatment, their levels of bad cholesterol and triglycerides were significantly reduced, according to the analyses conducted by Italian and Spanish scientists. Several studies had already demonstrated the antioxidant capacity of strawberries, but now researchers conducted an analysis that revealed that these fruits also help to reduce cholesterol.

In a study involving 171 patients, including 46 type 2 diabetics adhering to a Mediterranean diet (MD) (group 1), 44 type 2 diabetics adhering to a MD plus supplemented with red yeast rice (group 2), 38 dyslipidemic patients adhering to a MD alone (group 3), and 43 dyslipidemic patients adhering to a MD plus RYR (group 4), adherence to a MD alone was found to be effective in reducing LDL-cholesterol in statin-intolerant patients with presumably low cardiovascular risk, and the addition of RYR was found to further improve LDL levels in this population and in type 2 diabetics as well.

Coronary heart disease (CHD) is a leading cause of death worldwide, and elevated LDL cholesterol is a major risk factor. Although most consumers understand the importance of maintaining a healthy cholesterol level for a healthy heart, few associate gut health with heart health.

It’s the job of your liver to get rid of toxins. That means all of the stuff you ingest in the air you breathe, such as car exhaust, cigarette smoke, or fossil fuels, is handled by your liver. Ditto for the toxins that inadvertently make their way into your drinking water supply or the foods you eat. How does the liver accomplish this complicated task?